18 Jun 2013

Man in Samoa receives 11 years in jail for rape

10:29 am on 18 June 2013

A 28 year-old man in Samoa, Ailepata Manuleleua, has been convicted and sentenced to eleven years in jail for raping and robbing a 63 year-old Filipino woman.

A co-defendant, found not guilty of rape but guilty of robbing the elderly victim has been has been placed under probation and given 80 hours of community work.

But the victim says she will file an appeal against the not guilty verdict by a panel of assessors on the rape charge.

In a separate case in the Supreme Court in Samoa, a judge has decided not to send to jail a 24 year-old man who pleaded guilty to manslaughter after fatally shooting his sister.

Instead the defendant was given 24 months probation and 120 hours of community service.

The court accepted a submission from a defense lawyer that the defendant's sister died when he accidentally shot her with the gun he had been trying to find a safe place to store it.

However the police say the defendant was under the influence at the time of the incident but did not know the rifle was loaded.

Tasi Pepe had been visiting his sister at the time of the incident.